Template



Ma 21, 1935. L, ANDER ON 2,002,073

TEMPLATE Filed Aug. 15, 1932 2 Sheets-Sheet l U 7; Y mywzn ATTORNEY7 May 21, 1935. J.L. ANDERSON 2,002,073

TEMPLATE Filed Aug. 13, 1932 2Sheets$heet 2 ATTORNEY Fir man 21,1935, 2,002,073

. rammars- James L. Anderson,- Closter, N. J., assignor to Air Reduction Company, Incorporated, New York, N. Y a corporationof New York 1 Application August 13, 1932, Serial No. 628,662 0 Claims. ((133-25) 4 f "The invention relates to template-controlled roller and of the cutting jet will be so accelerated apparatus of the kind in which a cutting torch that the cut may be lost. or other instrumentality carried by a suitable Automatic fingers have been successfully 'used .i'rame or support is moved at uniform speed in 'in connection with the templates of magnetic I any and changing directions by a motor-driven tracer cutting machines to overcome this difli- 5 electromagnetic follower or tracer cooperating culty, but the provision of such fingers is not alwith the external or internal boundary ofa teinways convenient. This is more especially true plate of paramagnetic materialgf when the magnetic tracer is inverted, that is to v Specifically, the invention has to do with on say has its roller at'the lower end, and the temimproved template for-guiding a magnetic folplate, which may support the weight of the 10 lower of the kind disclosed in Patent 1,839,170, tracer, rests upon a bed; issuedon anapplicationof Fred E. Rogers and With the apparatus of the prior patent remyseli, said follower having upper and lower ferred to, sharp corners of allkinds could be magnet rollers, driven in opposite directions, traced and out without the use of automatic which cooperate respectively, and at different fingers. One of the two rollers cooperates with 15 times; with external and internal template porthe edge face of the main template, which may tlons, Y r be formed with any number of internal corners, While the utility of such tracers and temthesecond roller turning idly in space until the plates is not necessarily restricted to torch apparegion of an external corner is reached. There 'ratus or to cutting by means of an oxygen jet or an internal corner template piece is provided, an welding by means of a high temperature flame which takes control. in cooperation with the secjet, these, and more especially torch cutting of end roller,the first roller then turning idly, until metal, are the principal or] contemplate fields this corner is turned, whereupon the first roller of application. Considering the case of a uniagain "rolls in contact with the main template, as lversalcuttingmachine,it willbe understood that to which the guidance or control is restored. the torch is to be so moved that the path of This plan has proved very successful and permovement of its cutting iet reproduces the path mits the tracing of practically any design that v of the axis of the magnetic tracer'roller, the can be-drawn. It was necessary, however, to set reproduction being at a 'one to one ratio or at the extra internal corner template piece or pieces so other ratio, and direct or in reverse, depending with great accuracy, which wastroublesome and go upon the particular character of the reproductook time; otherwise the cut might exhibit a jog tion frame, carriages or linkage, a variety of where the tracerjumped laterally from one temwhich arewell known. i plate track to the other, or the movement might The particular problem is to make it possible 'be stopped becauseof'the setting being too close. to cause the controlled instrumentality to execute The object of this invention is to provide a de- ,5 abrupt'or sharp angulartums in any direction, cidedimprovement upon the subject-matter of or turns of any desired small radius of c'urvathe patent aforesaid, though within the general ture. Internal corners or anglesare' easy to rescope thereof, whereby all the advantages of the produce, since it is necessary only to form the inmatters covered by the patent are preserved and 40 ternal corner of the template on a radius of the necessity for very accurate setting of the 40 curvature but slightly greater than the radius of auxiliary template piece is avoided. This is acthemagnetic roller; Then the axis of the roller complished by making the auxiliary or internal? will experience a virtually sharp change in ditemplate piece movable to the extent that it will rection of translation, and the cutting jet, if the be shifted slightly by the magnetic force, that is operationjbe one of cutting, will execute-a correto say suiiicie'ntly so that guidance will be trans- 45 sponding movement, so that a comer to allinjferred from one template to the other and back tents and purposes angular, or of very slight again, as theflmagnetic tracer approaches and radius of curvature, will be cut. If the roller is leaves thecorneror turn, without any undesired .called upon to negotiate an' external corner of jog in the path oftranslation movement, and

so the template, however, while. in contact therewithout any danger of blocking the movement. so with,'it will beevident that the radius of the", Otherwise, the auxiliary or internal template shortest curve that can be described will be the piece serves in the same way as the internal temradius ofthe roller, with the result'that' a de fl-Tplate piece of the patent.

nite'ly rounded corner only can be cut, in addi- In order to facilitate the transfer of control ll tion to which the movement of the axis of the from one template and roller to the other tem- 56 1T -STATES. PATENT OFFICE plate and roller, and to insure uninterrupted motion when the change in direction is executed, it is advisable to provide means for weakening the attraction between the main template and its roller at the region where the other roller is to travel on the internal template piece. In the aforesaid patent, an insert of diamagnetic material was set into the face of the external corner region of the main template. Another object of the present invention is to providea'. simpler and more effective way of accomplishing the result. I do this by reducing the amount of material in the external corner region of the main template, and preferably by providing a cut-out in the interior of this template portion, this cutout being adjacent the turn and being of predetermined shape and size to causethe attraction between the main template and its roller to weaken as the follower approaches the turn and to become stronger again after the follower passes the turn.

In the accompanying drawings, forming part hereof Fig. lis a plan view of a universal torch machine, together with a portion of a template embodying the invention;

Fig. 2 is a section taken on the line 2-4 of Fig. 1, a part of the casing of the follower being broken out;

Fig. 3 is a plan view, on a larger scale, of a portion of the template sufficient to illustrate the invention, one of the magnetic rollers being shown in horizontal section rolling on the boundaryof the external template andapproaching the internal template;

Fig. 4 is a similar view, showing the condition when the follower has proceeded somewhat farther in this course;

Fig. 5 is a similar view showing the condition after the follower has made the turn; and

Fig. 6 is a section on the line 6-6 of Fig. 3.

The frame 2 of known type shown in Fig. 1. is representative of any suitable form of universalmotion, or motion-reproducing, frame, of which various kinds are known. A cutting torch 3and a follower 4 mounted on the front bar 5 of the jointed frame are movable in all directions in a plane, more especially a horizontal plane, and in this particular form of apparatus the movements of the follower and of the controlled instrumentality are substantially the same in direction and in speed, but this is not essential.

The follower 4, like that disclosed in Patent 1,839,170, has two coaxial rollers 6, 1, constituting a polar projection of an electromagnet, the coil of which is housed in a casing 8. The rollers are on the ends of coaxial shafts 9 and III, which are driven in opposite directions by an electric motor l.| through gearing l2.

A portion of a template l3 to guide the follower is shown in Fig. 1. A corner is to be traced by the axis of the rollers 6, I, and is to be reproduced in the cutting of the metal (not shown) by the action of the oxygen jet of the torch 3. The purpose of the present improvement is to facilitate operations in which abrupt changes of direction. or sharp corners, are required.

The cutting of a design having internal and external angles may be considered as the example. It may be assumed that, throughout most of the course, the follower is guided by a main template I4, the boundary l5 of which constitutes atrack to which the upper magnetized roller 6 strongly adheres, thereby securing the traction for driving the apparatus. This template may be of any configuration, and may have as many internal turns as the design to be cut may call for. It may be fastened to a suitable bed IE; or may rest on the bed without fastening, and, if supported on a bed, is either undercut or blocked up so that the lower magnetized roller 1 turns idly except at an external corner region, where it coacts with an internal template piece II. There will be one or more of these auxiliary templates, depending upon the number of external corners to be negotiated. In other words, wherever the follower or tracer would otherwise be called upon to turn an external corner of the main template, an internal template piece H is provided.

The template piece ll has an internal boundary or surface l8 affording a track for the roller 1, the planes between which this track is included being offset from the planes between which the main track I5 is included. The track 18 comprises two portions in angular relation to each other, spaced outwardly from the template I4,

and connected by a curve the radius of which y will be determined by the degree of abruptness with which the direction ofmovement is to be changed. If the radius of this curve is made only .slightly greater than the radius of the roller 1,

the out which is made by the torch will possess a virtually sharp corner, whereas if the apparatus were guided at this region by the roller 6 turning the external corner of the template l4, the corner of the cut would be made on a curve corresponding approximately to the radius of the roller. The template piece I1 is preferably made in the form of an elbow, though obviously its external configuration is unimportant. The internal surface is so formed and so spaced from the template M, or, conversely, the external surface of the template I4 is so formed and so spaced from the internal template piece II, that the roller 6 is free of magnetic or traction contact with the template I4 while the roller I makes the turn in magnetic traction contact with the piece I1.

. With a fixed, or stationary, internal template 1 piece, asdisclosed in Patent 1,839,170, the setting of the template must be very exact. In the present invention, that. difliculty is "overcome by mounting the template piece I! so that it can be shifted automatically and slightly by the magnetic effect. For purpose of illustration, the shaping, and the extent of movement of the template piece II, have been somewhat exaggerated in the drawings.

In Fig. 3 we see the roller 6 traveling along a side IQ of the template l4 toward the turn. The arriving" limb 20 of the internal template piece I! (we may speak, for convenience, of this piece as having two limbs) which overlaps this side of the external-template, is inclined somewhat away from the template l4, whereas the departing limb 2| is inclined somewhat toward the side 22 of the template H. The roller I, beneath the roller 6 and preferably of the same diameter, clears the template piece I] as it enters.

Presently, asthe follower proceeds, the magnetic rollers toward the side 22 of the template i4,

' the roller! "awayfrom the end'of the limb 22.

After these things have'take'n place, the limb 20 is again inclined sufficiently away from the side IQ of the external template I to allow free entrance of the roller 1 when the follower travels again through the same course as before.

By. virtue of the mounting of the piece II .which permits it to shift in the general manner described, the path of the axis of the rollers, and consequently the path of the oxygen jet of the cutting torch, will contain no offset or jog such as would result from, the follower leapingflaterally from one guide to the other. On the other hand, the piece II will not block the movement of the follower, as it might doif it were a stationary part set a little too close to the main template.

The template device l1 need not necessarily consist of a single member, and the mounting which enables it to shift 'so that control is transferrredf from one template to the other and back again, without stoppage and without jog, can be contrived in a variety of specifically different ways which will suggest themselves to the skilled mechanic. The simplest and most convenient construction is one in which the internal template device i1 consists of a single piece and is tumable through a small angular displacement about a pin or screw 23 fastened to a suitable support, such as the bed l6. As shown, this center passes through the apical portion of the template piece.

' However, the invention is not limited to a pivoting of the auxiliary or internal template piece, since it may be movable in a more or less bodily manner. Again, the internal template device could be constituted of two independently movable parts. The piece should not move too freely, for which reason the screw 23 is preferably turned down fairly tight, so that the shiftable template piece will remain frictionally held in any position in which it is left. The movement ofthe template piece could be made free as far as fastenings are concerned and be resisted by other means tending to keep it in positions of rest. For further security, the piece I! may be provided with slotted lugs 24, through which other screws 25 pass into the bed. 1

Instead of, or in addition to, friction or resistance obtained by fastenings or other mechanical means, to keep the auxiliary template piece in proper position until it should move, suflicient weight in this piece may be relied upon. Again, if the bed It is of paramagnetic material, the piece I! will be held in position magnetically when in the field of the tracer magnet, but will nevertheless slip and adjust itself by reason of the attraction between the magnetic pole and the fixed and movable template parts.

In order to weaken the attraction between the roller 6 and the template II as the follower approaches the turn and the roller 1 and the template l1 assume the driving and guiding functions, so that the roller i will leave its track II and not seek to pull the follower around the corner on the template H, but will permit the roller 1 to do the driving and guiding at this time in 1 contact with the piece I1, I make the cut-out or recess ii in the interior of the template II. It will be observed that the side 34 of this opening is close to the external side I! of the main template, at the region near the corner where it is overlapped by the limb 20 of the shiftable piece l1, and that its sides I! and 36 go off diagonally.

so that the attraction between the roller 6 and the template ll becomes less strong and then decidedly weak as the point where the direction istobe' changed isclosely approached, and then becomes progressively stronger after the change of direction has been effected and the template I4 is' to control the movement. The

paramagnetic materiabin this part may be reduced by thinning or recessing or otherwise, to secure the same effect in substantially the same way.

It will be understood that the term internal template device signifies a paramagnetic template element or elements providing an internal corner; turn or deflection, to cooperate with one of the magnetic rollers opposite a region where there is or would be an external corner or turn of the template with which the other roller cooperates in other parts of the course. The corners to be cut may be right-angular, obtuse or acute. It will be evident, also, that the internal template devices may be shaped to cause the roller axis and, therefore, the torch jet, to trace a curve of any curvature that could not be satisfactorily traced by rolling contact of one of the rollers with an external angle or curve of-the" operate with one of the rollers, an internal template device, also of magnetic material, to cooperate with the other roller to effect a desired change in direction, and means for supporting said internal template device so that it can be shifted slightlyby the magnetic attraction between the rollers and the guiding portions, to insure transfer of the control of the follower from one template element to the other without log or stoppage.

2. Template means as set forth in claim 1, in

which the internal template device is fastened to turn on a. center.

3. Template means as set forth in claim 1, in which by mechanical means the internal template device is held frictionally.

4. Template means as set forth in claim 1, in

which the internal template device is held in position magnetically.

5. Template means as set forth in claim 1, in which the internal template device is fastened to turn on a center against substantial frictional resistance.

6. Template means for guiding a follower having upper and lower magnet rollers driven in opposite directions, said means having, in addition to a template of magnetic material to cooperate with one of the rollers, an internal template device, also of magnetic material, at said region to cooperate with the other roller to eflect a desired change in direction, said. internal template device being movable so as to be shittplate element to the other without log or stoppage, the first-mentioned template having a reduction oi, its mass adjacent the region of the change of direction to secure predetermined change in the attraction between this template and the corresponding roller at this region.

7. Template means as set forth in claim 6, wherein the first-mentioned template has a cutout in its interior adjacent the region of the change oi direction to secure predetermined change in the attraction between this template and the corresponding roller at this region.

. 8. Template means for guiding a follower having upper and lower magnetrollers driven'in opposite directions, said means comprising a template of magnetic material adapted to cooperate with one of the rollers through part of,

the prescribed course and an internal template with the other roller to cited: a sharp change in direction, the first-mentioned template having means, consisting solely of a reduction of its mass adjacent the region of the change of direction, for securing predetermined gradualchange in the attraction between this template and the corresponding roller at this region, the reduction in mass 01 the first-mentioned template being accomplished by means of a cut-out in its interior adjacent the region of the change of direction to secure predetermined change in the attraction between this template and the corresponding roller at this region.

9. Template means for guiding a follower having upper and lower'magnet rollers driven in opposite directions, said means having, in addition to a template of magnetic material to cooperate with one of the rollers, an auxiliary template device, also of magnetic material, to cooperate with the other rollerto effect a desired change indirection, and means for holding said auxiliary template device in position with sufficient treedom'to move and adjust itself under magnetic attraction.

JAMES L. ANDERSON. 2a 

